139

L. M.

Divine Providence.

LIVERPOOL COL.

1 THE earth and all the heavenly frame
Their great Creator's love proclaim;
He gives the sun his genial power,
And sends the soft, refreshing shower.
2 The ground with plenty blooms again,
And yields her various fruits to men
To men, who from thy bounteous hand
Receive the gifts of every land.

3 Nor to the human race alone

Is thy paternal goodness shown;
The tribes of earth, of sea and air,
Enjoy thy universal care.

4 Not e'en a sparrow yields its breath
Till God permits the stroke of death;
He hears the ravens when they call,
The Father and the Friend of all.

5 To thee, in ceaseless strains, my tongue
Shall raise the morn and evening song,
And, long as breath inspires my frame,
The wonders of thy love proclaim.

140

L. M.

The Bounties of Providence.

DODDRIDGE.

1 FATHER of lights, we sing thy name,
Who kindlest up the lamp of day;
Wide as he spreads his golden flame,
His beams thy power and love display.

2 Fountain of good, from thee proceed The copious drops of genial rain,

Which through the hills, and through the meads,
Revive the grass, and swell the grain.

3 Through the wide world thy bounties spread;
Yet millions of our guilty race,
Though by thy daily bounty fed,
Affront thy law, and spurn thy grace.

4 Not so may our forgetful hearts
O'erlook the tokens of thy care;
But what thy liberal hand imparts,
Still own in praise, still ask in prayer.
5 So shall our suns more grateful shine,

And showers in sweeter drops shall fall,
When all our hearts and lives are thine,
And thou, our God, enjoyed in all.

141

C. M.

DODDRIDGE.

God supplying human Wants.

1 PARENT of universal good,
We own thy bounteous hand,
Which does so rich a table spread
E'en in this desert land.

2 Struck by thy power, the flinty rocks
In gushing torrents flow;

The feathered wanderers of the air
Thy guiding instinct know.

3 The pregnant clouds, at thy command,
Rain down delicious bread;

And by light drops of pearly dew
Are numerous armies fed.

4 Supported thus, thine Israel marched
The promised land to gain;
And shall thy children now begin
To seek their God in vain ?

5 Are all thy stores exhausted now?
Or does thy mercy fail?

That faith should languish in our breasts,
And anxious cares prevail?

142

L. M.

"All Things yours."

WATTS.

1 HOW vast the treasure we possess !
How rich thy bounty, King of grace!
This world is ours, and worlds to come;
Earth is our lodge, and heaven our home.

2 The springing corn, the stately wood,
Grow to provide us house and food;
Fire, air, earth, water, join their force;
All nature serves us in her course.

3 The sun rolls round to make our day;
The moon directs our nightly way;
While angels bear us in their arms,
And shield us from ten thousand harms.

4 O, glorious portion of the saints!

Let faith suppress our sore complaints, And tune our hearts and tongues to sing Our bounteous God, our sovereign King.

143

L. M.

Praise for temporal Blessings. Ps. 68.

WATTS.

1 WE bless the Lord, the just, the good,
Who fills our hearts with joy and food,
Who pours his blessings from the skies,
And loads our days with rich supplies.

2 He sends the sun his circuit round,

To cheer the fruits, to warm the ground; He bids the clouds with plenteous rain Refresh the thirsty earth again.

3 'Tis to his care we owe our breath, And all our near escapes from death; Safety and health to God belong;

He heals the weak, and guards the strong.

144

H. M.

WATTS.

God our Preserver. Ps. 121.

1 UPWARD I lift my eyes;
From God is all my aid
The God that built the skies,

And earth and nature made:
God is the tower

To which I fly;
His grace is nigh

In every hour.

2 My feet shall never slide,

And fall in fatal snares,

Since God, my Guard and Guide,
Defends me from my fears:

Those wakeful eyes,
That never sleep,
Shall Israel keep,
When dangers rise.

3 No burning heats by day,
Nor blasts of evening air,
Shall take my health away,
If God be with me there :
Thou art my sun,

And thou my shade,

To guard my head
By night or noon.

4 Hast thou not given thy word
To save my soul from death?
And I can trust my Lord
To keep my mortal breath:
I'll go and come,
Nor fear to die,

Till from on high
Thou call me home.

145

L. M.

WATTS.

Divine Protection. Ps. 121.

1 UP to the hills I lift my eyes

The eternal hills beyond the skies;
Thence all her help my soul derives;
There my almighty Refuge lives.

2 He lives, the everlasting God,

That built the world, that spread the flood; The heavens with all their hosts he made, And the dark regions of the dead.